Michigan, Swing States, Among Least Politically Engaged States

Most experts agree that the 2024 presidential election will likely come down to seven critical swing states. Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina and Wisconsin are the primary states to keep an eye on as they each will likely be won by less than 5 points on election night.

Because these states expect to be the center of attention as the votes are counted on the night of November 5, it'd be reasonable to expect that these states would be more politically invested than the rest. But one study says that isn't the case.

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WalletHub conducted a study analyzing recent election trends as well as current civic trends among all 50 states to see which states were more engaged during this election cycle.

The results aren't too surprising until you look at those seven swing states. Blue states are overwhelmingly more invested, which typically matches with those states' education, GDP and tax fairness rankings.

As for the rankings of most politically engaged, Michigan falls in the middle at No. 26 overall. The blame can't necessarily be pinned on young voters either. Michigan is tied for 21st with 52% of voters aged 18-24 expected to participate. Meanwhile, 75% of voters 65 or older are expected to participate, though that ranks just 29th in the nation as well.

Still, Michigan saw one of the largest turnouts in state history in 2020. Nearly 6 million Michiganders voted in the 2020 election, 70.5 percent of the voting-age population, 8th highest among all states. That doesn't exactly scream disinterest.

Here's how the other swing states stacked up for their political engagement rankings, according to WalletHub:

• Arizona: 9
• Georgia: 33
• Minnesota: 7
• North Carolina: 40
• Pennsylvania: 20
• Wisconsin: 17

Minnesota is historically known for great voter turnout, so its high engagement ranking isn't too surprising. Arizona, however, is the opposite of consistent, so their top-10 ranking is a bit more intriguing.

Of course, polls and projections are rarely able to truly capture the political landscape of the country. Early voting is already off to a record start - especially in Georgia - and if recent trends, particularly with the 2020 election, are to be respected, the country is more invested than ever.